Drug shows promise at lifting depression quickly

Researchers at Roseman University of Health Sciences in Nevada have found promising results for an antidepressant that may be able to lift a person’s mood within 24 hours instead of taking weeks to have an effect. Not only is it fast-acting, but it also appears to have long-term effects, based on a study with mice.

The drug has been shown by previous researchers to cause a rapid antidepressant effect in animals by blocking one of the brain’s signaling chemicals. The researchers zeroed in on the drug through “virtual screening,” a method that uses computer modeling to identify drugs likely to interact with particular receptors in the brain.

Following the virtual screening, the researchers tested its effects in cell cultures and then mice. In addition to its antidepressant properties, it also, according to the scientists, appears unlikely to become addictive.

Blood test for depression may be possible

Researchers at the Medical University of Vienna in Austria have demonstrated that it may one day be possible to determine from a blood test if a person suffers from depression.

Serotonin transporter (SERT) is a protein that helps transport serotonin, a neurotransmitter known as the “happiness hormone” into the cell. In the brain, this regulates neural depression networks, and a lack of serotonin has been linked to depression. SERT works in a similar way in blood, ensuring that the right amount of serotonin is in plasma.

For the study, researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and studying certain drugs to demonstrate that there is a close relationship between the speed of serotonin uptake in blood platelets and the function of a depression network in the brain.

Researchers say this shows that a blood test to detect depression is possible for diagnosing depression and could be available in the near future.